Apple has been doint a lot of app deleting from their store. This past year, they have approved and then deleted more apps that I can count. Today’s latest to take down is a app that made a game out of school shootings.

Zombie School is the title of the game, where a student takes  control of a zombie shooting tower and kill off their fellow peers and principals. At first you have a bow and arrow, then as you kill off more you work up to guns and bombs.

Though it has been 10 years since Columbine, it still stays fresh in peoples minds. Many people felt that the game promotes school shootings, though Retarded Arts(the developer of the app) claims that it does not.

 Though Apple approved it due to them killing zombies, the public outlash forced them to take it down as of today.

[source]

Looks like us Aussies were able to download it before our fellow Americans since many of my U.S. Twitter friends complained that they could not even see it in their AppStore instance.

Skype iPhone AppStore Download
Skype for iPhone took a little longer to download than the average app but it eventually completed its journey onto my iPhone. This app is taking a spot on my first page of apps given it’ll be one of my most used.

Voice Calls with Skype iPhone – Not allowed over 3G
Not sure if it’s a limitation with my carrier (Telstra) or a general iPhone Skype restriction but I could not make or receive calls via my 3G connection. Either way, this puts a damper on the whole app release and I especially feel for those customers who have all-you-can-eat data plans who can’t take advantage of potentially cheaper calls via Skype.

Other than that, voice calls over WiFi connections was fine. I even had a random Twitter guy (@ispears) call me from London to help me test this. We spoke for approximately 4 minutes and throughout that time didn’t experience any dropouts or noticeable distortion.

I liked how Skype had a speakerphone option so I could keep an eye on my waning battery life while enjoying the bliss of a Skype voice call.

Chatting Over Skype iPhone
As expected, talking to your friends via the chat option is simple and visually pleasing. You can have real time conversations with your Skype buddies and while doing so you the app allows you the options of either calling them and viewing their profile.

Other features of the Skype for iPhone include:

- take a photo for your avatar within the app
- conference call ability
- Buy Skype credits, Online Number and Voicemail buttons (takes you to website)

Being able to use Skype on iPhone’s award winning interface has just increased the iPhone’s functionality even more – even though it’s taken around 2 years, it’s a welcome addition to the AppStore.

Most smartphone platforms support touchscreens and/or keyboards, and let you browse the internet, run apps, view photos and play games/music/movies. And while they may act the same on a fundamental level, not all smartphones are created equal. Here’s where they match up, and where they don’t:

It’s fortunate that the iPhone OS 3.0 has been announced – if not for that, most of the fields is the iPhone column would be a big, ugly, red NO.

via Gizmodo.

Core functionality:

• Copy and paste text – well ’bout time
• Copy and paste photos
• Global search via Spotlight feature
• Search in mail, calendar and iPod
• Landscape keyboard

Communications:

• 3G Tethering
• Multimedia messaging (MMS)
• Push notification
• Wi-Fi auto-login
• Send and receive files via bluetooth
• Peer to peer (iPhone) connectivity
• Browse remote content on other iPhones
• Stereo Bluetooth A2DP audio – finally, you can use your bluetooth headphones!
• VOIP in apps

App improvements / new apps:

• Voice memo & audio recording in apps
• Calendar CalDAV and .ics calendar support
• Use maps in other applications
• Turn by turn directions API
• Safari browser improvements – auto-login, anti-phishing
• Sync notes in iTunes
• Improved stocks application
• Rumbling – for games and such
• App store improvements – app subscriptions, add-ons for apps and games

Anyway, don’t just take our word for it – see screenshots or a video walkthrough of the beta.  You’ll be amazed!

via Gizmodo.

The biggest rumours have been generated by Digg founder Kevin Rose, who is sticking his neck out and claiming the following:

• Cut and paste by double tapping a word, then pinching to choose the highlighted text (which is apparently indicated by a set of quote marks), and choosoing from a button: cut, copy or paste.
• Applications will still be unable to run as a background process
• No video recording for this release
• All the features that the Palm Pre will have

The last statement is quite vague, but alludes to a move by Apple to head off their competitor even before the product hits the market.

Kevin Rose’s track record in predictions aside, there is also speculation that Apple will be releasing a new iPhone model.  Apple has been consistent with its device refreshes, launching the original iPhone in June 2007 and the iPhone 3G in 2008.  An Apple rumours site, MacRumours, is even suggesting holding off on iPhone purchases as a new model is imminent.

Personally, I think that with new devices such as the Palm Pre and the next generation of Android phones emerging, the smartphone market is nearing in a “perfect storm” situation.  Exciting times indeed for gadget-o-philes!

via Gizmodo.